This invention concerns a movable insulated conveyor for the continuous casting of slabs.
The slabs with which the invention is concerned are advantageously from 700 to 2500 millimeters wide and from 30 to 200 millimeters thick.
However, the invention is also applied to billets, blooms or slabs of other dimensions.
The invention is applied advantageously to plants which connect at least two continuous casting lines to a rolling train.
The state of the art covers plants for the continuous casting of thin slabs, the plants including a plurality of casting lines tending one or more rolling lines at the same time.
EP-A-0492226 discloses, for instance, two or three continuous casting lines, each of which is served by tunnel furnaces.
A disclosure which is analogous from many standpoints is contained in JP-A-55-45530.
These two prior art documents teach that the rolling line is brought into connection alternatively with the casting lines by means of rotation of terminal segments of tunnel furnaces about the end of the segment in question. This rotation takes place at one end of the segments and entails problems of travel, inertia, installed power and loss of heat; problems concerning the transfer and control of the heat delivered by possible burners are also involved.
It should be borne in mind that these tunnel furnaces are very heavy and their movement is often difficult.
DE-A-3.901.582 discloses a lay-out in which a roller conveyor fitted to a rotary platform is included between the casting lines and the rolling train. The axis of rotation of the platform is located at a position at the centre of the length of the roller conveyor or at one of the ends of the conveyor, but this lay-out too does not overcome the above problems of travel, installed power, difficulty of movement and loss of heat.
Moreover, these lay-outs make it necessary that the lines to feed the burners and the means to recover fumes should be movable so as to be able to conform to the movements of the tunnel furnaces or roller conveyors.
Furthermore, these lay-outs do not permit work to be carried out, from above with an open top and without sidewalls, for maintenance or replacement of the rollers positioned on the floor of the tunnel furnaces, although such work is quite frequent in view of the thermal and mechanical stresses discharged onto the rollers.
In the state of the art such work requires either the lateral removal of the rollers or the removal of the roof of the tunnel furnace but does not eliminate the problems connected to the presence of the sidewalls.
Moreover, these lay-outs do not provide for the possible inclusion of large storage spaces required for periodical work needed in the rolling line and/or for any stoppages due to accidents.
Besides, in the case of special products or particular events the lay-outs of the state of the art do not provide for the ability to make use of stored slabs or blooms as an alternative to or in replacement of these arriving from the casting line, the store being hot or cold.
Moreover, the state of the art does not provide for the arrangement of momentary positions for storing the slabs outside the casting line, such storage positions being quickly accessible for performing operations of inspection, hot conditioning, cropping, shearing-to-size, etc.
Furthermore the state of the art does not allow for associating with the casting line a store for a cold charge or for special products, this store being able to be quickly and readily positioned in communication with the casting line.